Hardware

It is well reported that there is a need for federal and state investment in transportation, public buildings, water systems, and other vital infrastructure. Not only does it ensure secure and safe systems, but it is also essential to creating good jobs and economic recovery.

Two big movements are emerging for building owners. The first is that owners are beginning to leverage technology to help streamline many of the outdated processes that currently exist today, ultimately helping to centralize decisionmaking for the business.

Drones represent a huge opportunity in the construction industry today—and in the future. Goldman Sachs, for instance, predicts a $100 billion market opportunity for drones by 2020. Naturally, consumer and military are big opportunities, but it actually predicts that the fastest growth will happen in businesses and civil governments, with an expectation that they will spend $13 billion on drones between now and 2020.

Perhaps one of the biggest takeaways from Bentley Systems Year in Infrastructure 2018 Conference thus far is the fact that it has a clear focus on offering digital twin cloud services for infrastructure projects and assets.

Smart buildings are here. With the IoT (Internet of Things) and big data growing at rates faster than ever before, buildings are also becoming connected. For construction companies, investing in technologies and equipment such as sensors and platforms can enable clients to engage with occupants in realtime. Such is the case with hospitals.

The construction fleet looks very different today than even just five years ago. Today, automated equipment is completing tasks, drones are collecting data, and trucks are more connected than ever before. Going forward, this trend will continue, with fleets becoming smarter and safer, offering greater opportunities to improve productivity at the jobsite.